Green Bay's winter cover

The vast layer of ice becomes popular paradise for sportsmen

January 20, 2013|By Jay Jones, Special to Tribune Newspapers

Before air conditioning was invented, residents and summer visitors to Wisconsin's Door County were ever-so-thankful that, every winter, the water of Green Bay would freeze over. Huge blocks of the frozen water would be stored in ice houses to help keep folks comfortable during the warm summer months.

Blocks of ice are no longer extricated from the bay, but it continues to be one of the largest bodies of water in the country to be covered with ice consistently. In many spots, the thickness routinely approaches 3 feet.

Climate change may cause wild fluctuations in annual snowfall, but the bay, a vast inlet of Lake Michigan, has yet to fall victim to rising temperatures. That's a good thing for the outdoor enthusiasts who use the bay for a variety of winter activities — from snowmobiling to the rare, seldom-seen sport of human foosball.

"The shipping channel's locked up. It's all frozen over," longtime Door County resident Dale Stroschein said in early January. "The entire bay of Green Bay freezes, all the way from the city of Green Bay as far north as Little Bay de Noc (near Escanaba in Michigan's Upper Peninsula), which is probably about 130 miles."

Stroschein, a fishing boat captain and owner of Wacky Walleye Guide Service, watches as a skim of ice quickly forms once temperatures drop into the single digits.

Within days, the ice is thick enough to drive on. Stroschein and his employees then begin erecting shantytowns and drilling holes for ice fishing.

Ice fishing is a popular pastime on the bay, according to Stroschein, who with wife Karyn also runs the Sand Bay Beach Resort near Sturgeon Bay. They offer weekend packages that include meals, lodging and plenty of time on the ice, where an amazing variety of fish are biting beneath the heated shacks.

Whitefish and walleye are just two of the species frequently caught. Stroschein once held the world record for the largest walleye — nearly 14 pounds — to be landed while ice fishing.

"I always advise my guests to be very mobile … because where they bit yesterday, right inside the shack, they might not be biting there tomorrow," he said.

Despite the outdoor temperature that can be well below freezing, heaters within the shanties keep them nice and toasty at 75 to 80 degrees.

"Even though it's heated inside, you're really not having any adverse effect on the ice at all," Stroschein said. That's due, in part, to the thickness of the ice — generally between 28 and 32 inches — and the fact the shacks sit several inches above the surface.

Ice skaters and cross-country skiers also use the frozen bay for recreation, though in smaller numbers.

And early each February, people flock to the frozen bay as it becomes the focal point of the Fish Creek Winter Festival.

With cabin fever setting in, the festival's a good excuse to get out on the ice for some fun and, admittedly, oddball athletic pursuits. Those include ice bowling, crazy golf and an obstacle course traversed by snowshoers.

The goofiest game of all, however, may be human foosball.

"People actually replace what would be the plastic figures on a foosball table," said Erin Sutton, a spokeswoman for the Fish Creek Civic Association.

During the tournament, players are attached to PVC pipes that restrict their movements to side to side, much like in the popular table game.

"It was really popular last year," Sutton said. "We have about 10 teams that enter the tournament, and people are fighting to get spots."

Fish Creek is home to a variety of cozy inns, some of which welcome guests year round. One inn, the Whistling Swan, owes its existence to the bay's thick ice.

Built 1887 in Marinette, Wis., on the west side of the bay of Green Bay, the structure served as the Lumberman's Inn for 20 years before an early settler, Herman Welcker, purchased it as a way to lure visitors to the fledgling tourist town of Fish Creek.

In 1907, the only practical way to move the building was across the ice. Teams of horses hauled it, bit by bit, 18 miles from Marinette to Fish Creek. That would have been 120 miles over land on iffy roads. Once reassembled, the inn was known as Welcker's Resort and Casino, because male guests could enjoy card games in the basement.

And very likely, the only ice was in their drinks.

If you go

The Whistling Swan (920-868-3442, whistlingswan.com) is at 4192 Main St. in Fish Creek.